Philip Wright' s stories

Hitting market themes, leading innovation and gaining market share may be aspirations held dear by many underwriting banks but they are frustratingly difficult to achieve. One bank managed just this in the euro market in 2016, however. BNP Paribas is IFR’s Euro Bond House of the Year.

Maintaining focus at home while also performing a leading role on the global stage requires application that not all possess. Barclays, however, is no stranger to treading this path and is able to do so in a way that means it never loses focus. Barclays is IFR’s Sterling Bond House of the Year.

John Langley, Barclays’ head of global finance and risk solutions (GFRS), is leaving after a decade at the firm, as the British bank rejigged the structure of its investment bank into two distinct units led from London and New York.

It takes confidence and a wealth of experience to successfully navigate around markets that throw up fresh challenges at seemingly every turn. Barclays displayed just the steady hand required and is IFR’s Bond House, Europe Investment-Grade Corporate Bond House and SSAR Bond House of the Year.

Taking an already strong franchise to the next level is never an easy proposition. Developing one asset class without neglecting another is a balancing act, and growing all at once is a remarkable achievement. But that is what HSBC managed, for which it is IFR’s Euro Bond House of the Year.

In their attempts to offer a global suite of products to their clients, some banks run the risk of neglecting their domestic heritage. HSBC not only avoided this but managed to use its universal outlook to underpin its domestic achievements. HSBC is IFR’s Sterling Bond House of the Year.

Any expectations of a meaningful flurry of SSA bond issuance going into year-end were dealt a blow last Thursday – and fears were expressed for issuance levels in January – when ECB president Mario Draghi announced amendments to the central bank’s monetary easing initiative that left market participants feeling distinctly underwhelmed.